8 Drawing Mini Clinics

Today’s post is a collection of eight drawing mini clinics. Topics include horses, clouds, skies, and creating a strong center of interest.

Mediums include graphite and colored pencils, and different drawing methods are also included.

But they all have one thing in common: They’re short and sweet, easy-to-read, and contain step-by-step illustrations and instructions.

I’ve attempted to assemble drawing mini clinics that cover most aspects of drawing, that feature a variety of subjects, and describe a couple of techniques, too. But since I also wanted to keep this list short.

So if your favorite drawing clinic isn’t on this list, let me know what it is. It’s never too late to start another list!

And now for the good stuff!

8 Drawing Mini Clinics

How To Draw Thunderhead Clouds

An integral part of drawing believable skies is getting the clouds right. Whether towering and majestic or thin and wispy, clouds can add sparkle, color, and dimension to even the most basic landscape.

But apart from water, they can also be one of the most difficult and frustrating things to draw. They are ever changing, filled with light and shadow, and capable of going from bright to dark in a matter of moments.

This drawing clinic shows you how to draw big clouds from the first mark to the last using graphite pencils.

How To Show a Stormy Sky in Colored Pencil

One of the more difficult things to draw correctly in any landscape is the sky. Yet the lighting and qualities of the sky are the things that make or break your landscape. Get the sky right and you’ve won half the battle of a believable landscape. Get the sky wrong and the battle is all but lost.

How to Show a Stormy Sky in Colored Pencil gives you step-by-step instructions for drawing dark, brooding clouds in colored pencil.

Drawing Autumn Grass in Colored Pencil

The subject of this mini clinic is tall grass in the autumn. The original artwork is 5×7 inches and is a study for a larger landscape. The paper is white Bristol 146 pound with a regular surface.

Learn how to use directional strokes, a variety of colors, and values to draw tall, autumn grass in colored pencil. Step-by-step illustrations and instructions.

How to Draw a Complementary Under Drawing

This two-part mini clinic takes a look at using a complementary under drawing.

With this method, the under painting is created using colors opposite finished colors on the color wheel. It may sound odd, but it really does work and this clinic shows you how!

This drawing clinic is the first step, drawing the complementary under drawing. It also includes a link to the second step.

How to Draw a Standing Hoof with Graphite

Are you tired of drawing horses with no feet?

Do all of your horse drawings show horses in deep grass.

Is the only thing keeping you from drawing that sporting scene the idea—the fear!—of drawing all those feet?

If you answered “yes” to any of those questions, you’ll want to read this drawing clinic. The medium is graphite, but the lesson applies to all mediums.

Draw a Miniature Drawing of a Mare and Foal

This drawing clinic shows how to use a layering method to draw a portrait in colored pencil.

The method is a simplified version of the classical method in which I do an umber under drawing first, then layer color over the under drawing.

The subject is a portrait of a mare and foal from several years back. The portrait is a miniature at 3-1/2″ by 2-1/2″ inches. The medium is colored pencil.

How to Draw the Legs & Feet of Horses

A horse’s feet are nearly as distinctive to each horse as human fingerprints are to each person. Bone structure in the legs, body type, and genetics all play a role in the shape of the natural hoof.

If your desire is to draw horse portraits, you will need to learn how to draw the legs and feet, too. Sooner or later, someone will ask you for a conformation or sporting portrait.

This drawing clinic is based on a large, sporting oil painting. I use the line drawing for that portrait to show you one way to draw the legs and feet of a horse.

Creating A Center of Interest

Learn how to create a dynamic center of interest in every graphite drawing by using value, shape, and line. Master this method and never draw another dull drawing!

The principle also applies to using color and value in colored pencil drawings or paintings in other mediums.